4th and final and out of ideas. Middle name Harriet.

Hi everyone! I think I've had too many kids, I'm out of ideas and nothing really grabs me. Due 8/5 with #4, third girl.

Siblings are Claire Abigail, Alan David, Valerie Violet.

The middle name for this baby is Harriet (in honor of my dad, Harry) and that is 100% set in stone.

Nothing too popular (like top 10), nothing too uncommon, no contemporary made up names, and definitely no 'unique' spellings. I like Celeste, Felicity, Fiona, and Gemma but I'm not really attached to any one of them.

Where are you located? That'll affect both the interpretation of "8/5" (August 5th or May 8th?) and what names are in the top 10.

Have you tried out the Name Matchmaker on this site? Plugging in your kid's names in various combinations, omitting top-10 suggestions, and omitting anything starting with C, A, or V, the top suggestion is Sarah, followed by Isabelle, Maria, Rachel, and Teresa. Elise, Evelyn, and Julie are not far behind.

For what it's worth, I love Harriet for you, and I'm wondering why it's being relegated to the middle spot. :)

You have a terrific shortlist, I love 3/4 of them! ;) I wouldn't worry about "another C" as Celeste is a different sound altogether. Do you like Ceciliy or Cecilia? Fits right in with the sounds Celeste and Felicity, plus Cecilia has the -a ending of your other two choices (Fiona and Gemma).

So you have a fine shortlist of four. What are your feelings on each of them beyond that none is perfect? If you have a partner, does s/he have opinions that are same/different? Knowing the background dynamics may help navigate this decision.

I thought of Rachel for you, as TOH mentioned. Theresa is a great fit too, from her MatchMaker list. The other one I'm loving with your kids' names is Marianne. I get a mid-century sort of vibe from them; top names of the 40s - 60s might be a place to look for inspiration.

Thanks for the responses! 8/5 as in August 5th. Some great suggestions, too. :) I hadn't given much thought to the other names ending in E, though using two C names did give me a bit of pause - I know that's not much of a big deal, but clearly I'm picky.

I forgot to note that I also am avoiding any Biblical/Abrahamic type names which does eliminate a lot in general.

I've done the name wizard, also swapping in and out some of the others I like . . . but like I said, not a lot really grabs me. I'm hoping I'll just catch something that I really, truly love.

(Harriet is in the middle because although kids can nickname just about anything, I'm not so sure about making her Hairy Harriet for her childhood, haha.)

To touch on some others - I like Cecily/Cecilia in general, but I don't like how it feels when I say it (I'm so sorry, I'm weird, clearly, haha) so I don't think I'd want a lifetime of saying it.

My feelings on the ones I have are that I don't hate them. I worry about people mispronouncing Gemma even though it seems like an obvious pronunciation. Fiona feels like it belongs on a redhead, and I have blondes, haha. Maybe I'm just associating it with Shrek. Felicity I've been fond of since I was a child, but part of me resists it and I'm not sure why. Celeste I like the sound of and feel of, but it feels a little bit full of itself, too. I also sort of like Delilah but it pulls in the whole 'lily/lilah/layla' thing that's pretty popular currently and I don't know if I care for that.

My husband's opinions on names are USUALLY the same or within the same sort of tastes. He keeps coming back to Catherine and I don't like it and never have, never will. Gemma is the only one he's also come up with this time so far. Valerie was his first suggestion for the last baby and Claire was my top choice overall. So I think I tend to go a little shorter and clean and he likes things that are a little longer and feminine. Not that Claire *isn't*, but I think you all get what I mean.

I want to hide in a hole now because I realize how nuts I sound about this. ;)

You don't sound nuts- not even close. Everybody has their own naming preferences, and they are not always even consistent (mine feel like they are never consistent). This is a decision that you will deal with for the rest of your life- any sane person would take that seriously.

I am no naming expert so I will leave the suggestions to the wise and knowledgeable gals here, but I just had to tell you that. Also to wish you good luck- I think finding the right name sometimes takes a little bit of luck.

If you're avoiding biblical names, Delilah would fall in that category, though iit's probably also being avoided by people who are *pro* Bible names (since she's not favorably depicted), so just left to those who are neutral toward Bible names.

My primary association for Delilah is biblical, even though I'm an atheist raised by atheists. You may want to avoid that one if you don't want bible names.

My faves from your initial list are Fiona and Gemma, both have been on my own lists and either pairs nicely with Harriet and fits with your existing children. If you don't find a name you really love that jumps out as THE ONE, either of these could be a good choice.

The young Valerie I know has a sister named Rachel. I think all of your girls names are in the "new classics" style -- they're names that I see most often represented in our own generation, although I do see them on little ones. So, I might go trawling through name lists from the 70s-90s and seeing which names still feel fresh to you, rather than dated. For me, Amber is my favorite 80s name by far - such an evocative nature name, such a clean and unfrilly sound. I also quite still like Melissa, Vanessa, Amanda which are a little more lacy and elaborate than the names you favor, which have a more crisp simplicity: might you like Tara, Jenna, Karen (or similarly unfrilly Maren?), Alison. Other "mom names" that I've recently encountered on very young girls include Lauren, Tiffany, Stephanie, Julia, Julie, Bethany, Ashley, Samantha, Shelby... and Stacey has come up here quite a lot, too. (I really don't mean to disparage these names at all by calling them mom names, they were just names that made me double-take to encounter on a baby or elementary school kid because they are a bit out of sync with the generational trends... but that I think means that they're familiar and surprisingly underused in their peer group.)

My experience is the same as yours -- I knew several Julias growing up, but not so many that it felt oversaturated. Looking at the graph, it may have technically peaked in the 2000s in terms of rank, but in terms of saturation, it really has a very broad summit starting in the 80s. And even at its lowest points mid-century, it was still ranked in the 100s. So yes, I would definitely consider it timeless, but with a slight "mom" slant. Julie, on the other hand, is a mom name to *me* -- I've met a few my own age, but far more in my parents' generation. Which the data again seem to bear out -- it had a massive peak in the 50s and 60s, though also has been used consistently since then with ranks in the 100s. So if anything, I think Julie is now a grandma name. But I also don't think it will suffer the same fashion stigma as some other grandma names (Susan, Donna, Debbie?), given that it also works as a short form for timeless Julia and currently fashionable Julian(n)a and Juliet(te).

My son has twice now named Julia as the name he would pick for a little sister and for the little cousin who is due in a few weeks. For a little brother, it was Ben. I'm pretty sure he got Julia from his best friend's sister, but I have no idea where Ben comes from. Maybe a TV show? Anyway, I was pleased with his taste -- at four going on five, it could have gone in a pretty wild direction.

Valerie is very firmly a "grandma name" for me, since it's my actual grandmother's name. However, when I looked at the US stats, I saw that it peaked in the 60s (my grandmother was born in 1938), so clearly this isn't the general association.

Congrats on #4! I don't think you're being too picky- it is important to pick a name you love and that works for you! Hopefully some of these suggestions will be helpful. I tried to keep in mind the length and "match" with Harriet:

I am going to go out on a limb here. Gemma is the only name on BOTH you and your husband's shortlists. It is a fine and lovely name. If you are worried about spelling, I have also seen Jemma although Gemma is certainly more standard. It may not make your heart sing, but it is clearly working for both you and your husband. Congratulations on your little Gemma Harriet! What a lovely name!